Alabama Economy Nation's Fastest Growing?

A new economic growth projection estimates that Alabama's economy will see the second-largest amount of growth among all 50 states over the next six months.

The projection is built by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, as an estimator for economic growth across the country. The so-called leading index uses two state-specific components (housing permits, initial claims of unemployment insurance) and two national indicators (interest rates on Treasuries, total manufacturing growth) to estimate growth.

Alabama has posted strong leading index scores for three straight months now, and its November index score is its highest ever since the Philly Fed began its estimations.

If the Philly Fed is right, Alabama should expect to see strong growth in employment, wages, and manufacturing output over the next six months.

The last time Alabama sustained a high leading index score over the course of several months was in 1994, a year where the state added more than 50,000 jobs.

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